How to start VSCode Automatically when you sign into Windows 11

Posted on 20 November 2021

Windows 11 is the operating system we currently use. VSCode or Visual Studio code is our chosen IDE. If you use VSCode often enough, you might be thinking of just setting it up to open automatically… how do you go about this in Windows 11?

The Solution

The easiest way is to add VSCode to your startup folder. This was easy back in the days of Windows XP as it meant you could just dump the shortcut in the “Startup” folder in the start menu.

This isn’t present in Windows 11 however there is a way, with the following steps!

Step 1

The first thing you need to do is press and hold the Windows Key and tap the R key. This will bring up a run box. From here you need to type the following

shell:startup

And lastly, press enter. This will open the startup folder, leave this to one side.

Step 2

You now need to get a VSCode shortcut. The easiest way of doing this is to go to the start menu and search for VSCode or Visual Studio Code, right click on the VSCode icon and left click open file location.

When you get to the folder containing Visual Studio Code, you’ll need to right click on it and then left click on “Show More Options”, from here you’ll get the option to copy. Alternatively you can single click the icon and press CTRL and Copy.

Step 3

Last step is to either right click and paste in the startup folder or press CTRL and V. That’s all there is to it. From now on VSCode will open on sign in!

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